We will be travelling to Aruba for 2 weeks holidays in August with our 22 month old. Can you please let me know if there is a supermarket close to the TAMI where we could buy basics such as diapers, wipes, food jars. If you could also give me a price indication would be much appreciated. Thank you

To get to the 3 large supermarkets you will need to take a cab or the bus. They have EVERYTHING!!! Prices are slightly higher than the US. Also note that the prices at the supermarkets are in Florens and they will covert to US Dollars upon checkout! They sell all american brands!

Have fun!

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defecting to St. Thomas 5/24-5/31/08, Lauderdale by the Sea 2/4-2/11/09; St. Croix Oct. '09!

Thank you for your reply. As I am based in Ireland I do not know American brands.
I think I will bring a pack of diapers and basics to keep me going for a few days.
Are you in Aruba at the moment? If so, can you please tell me what is the weather like? Looking at weather forecast it appears that it has been cloudy all week!!!!!!

we always tell the new aruba traveler, do not look at weather forecasts. they are never right. if it gets cloudy in aruba you will appreciate it because it is quite warm. much warmer than you are used to in ireland.

you can expect the weather to be warm to hot, mostly sunny, breezy, with a possible quick shower. that's what the weather is all summer, lol.

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Yes, I always worry about the weather! We get so much rain over here that when I see clouds I panic! Mind you this week in Ireland the weather has been fantastic, up to 25C, last week we had 12C! Can not wait to arrive!!!!!!

just turn off the weather reports. pretend they do not exist. you will never have that weather in aruba.

please be sure to use a lot of sunscreen, especially on the little one. your skin is not at all used to the powerful rays of the aruban sun. nothing can ruin a vacation more than a terrible sunburn.

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Thank you for advice. I have bought a UV swimsuit so he will be more preteted than us.
We will stay in the Yamarijn, with usage of Divi facilities, I hope we have made a good choice.
Any comments or suggestion as regards to room location?
Thank you

The UV swimsuit is really a good idea, but your toddler will need a hat and sunblock too.

The Tamarijn is a nice laid back and relaxing type of resort.
There are plenty of finger foods that the Tamarijn serves that your child will be able to eat, breakfast...........bananas, french toast, cheerios, juices, bagels, muffins ' lunch.....sliced cheese, fruit, sandwiches, fries,chicken fingers, pizza, fish dinner.....more of the same. I suspect that you will not have to buy too much, if any, baby food as there is a ton of selection, even at the a'lacarte resturants.

Diapers..........Lings carries all of the major USA brands Pampers, Huggies etc... Wipes.........same thing.

Remember the swimming diapers.....do not let your child into the pool or the ocean using regular disposable diapers. Those diapers really absorb and get huge and then explode in the pool or ocean. The swim diapers give a snugger fit and do not get huge with absorption.

Loads of folks will probably comment about how disgusting it is having a child in the pool even while wearing the swim diapers, but the real deal is that the pools are all properly disinfected either with chlorine or bromine. In fact they are overly disinfected . They (the resorts) run their pool chlorine levels at 3.0 ppm or higher. In order to have proper disinfecting take place chlorine must be run at 1.5 ppm .
So even with urine in the pool.............one can still be safe and clean.
Pretty gross though huh?
I do not mean to sound smug or preachy...........I have run an intercollegiate sized indoor swim pool for many years. 230,000 gallons and I teach all ages and levels of red cross swim lessons. I have pretty much seen it all. I have been barfed on, boogeied on, peed on and pooped on.

Honestly, the swim diapers are the way to go.

Enjoy Aruba.
The Tamarijn will be a good place for you and yours.

Where in Ireland are you? Mom's folks were from Kilconnoly and Dad's from Kilkenney.

Andrea

ps

My husband and I will be in Aruba in August 16-25 and maybe we can arrange for a visit if you are there during the same timeframe.

Some of the resorts will not let babies in the pool even with swimmies on. I know our timeshare won't but they have a great kiddie pool. You might want to check so that people won;'t be giving you "LOOKS" Enjoy. Theresa

Andrea, thank you for your message, much appreciated. I have swim nappies and to be honest I much rather bring my son to swin in the sea than the pool.

As regards to meeting in Auba, we will be there from Aug 4 to 17 so we will have just missed eachother.

So your ancestors were from Ireland..... we live in Co Wicklow, but I am Italian and my husband is Irish.

As mentioned we are staying at the Tamarijn in any advise on which block to stay? We will have access to the Divi.
Can you please give some information on the most reliable company for Jeep or 4x4 rental for three days/week. The company must be able to supply a car child seat.

For car rental, we rent from Royal. They are very dependable and have car seats free of charge (most charge $5-7/per day) and they are in good shape. Here is their website http://www.arubaroyal.com/

Have a great vacation!

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3 days left and we are nearly ready to leave for our 1st family vacation, if anybody is there and sees us on Tam's beach please come over and say hi! Thank you all for all your advice and suggestions.

Itie, just wondering how your vacation went. I'm planning a trip for April 2007 - 2 families of 4 and the kids are 3 and 5 yrs old. Let me know how your accomodations were, thanks.

Hi Carrie,

Our holiday was fantastic, the only negative was that it was way too short, we should have stayed longer! Our 22month old had a great time, playing with the sand, water and spending hours in the pool.

We stayed on the Tamarijn an all-inclusive resort and it was great. Plenty of food choices thanks to an abundant buffet. The restaurant was also quite good. We purchased the Mega package so we were able to also eat at the Divi. We only went there twice so next time we will not purchase this type of package.

We rented a 4x4 with a baby car seat and we visited the whole island. Supermarkets are very well stocked and thanks to the car we were able to buy bottled water, juices, snacks, nappies to keep in the room as when you are all-inclusive all drinks are free but are served by the glass and if you have a kid it is useful to have drinks available on request!

I hope I was able to reply to some of your questions, pls feel free to ask for more info if you so require.